What is thick, protective, and often colored brown? Tree bark, of course! It’s easy to love the vibrant yellows, oranges, and reds of fall leaves, but the earthy hues of tree bark have a lot going on, and we can appreciate that. Tree bark is its own language. A tree’s layers give it a unique appearance.
Bark is not only beautiful in its own unique way, but it is also highly functional. In fact, it is essential. Bark keeps out the singe of the sun’s rays, keeping the tree from becoming desiccated by the same rays or from too much wind. Bark is a tree’s defense from fire, fungus infection, as well as insect assault.
An up-close-and-personal look can divulge a world of secrets held by bark. Bark’s nooks and crannies are home as well as shelter to numerous forest creatures. In the bark of a tree, insects and spiders of all descriptions live, inviting birds and beetles, thereby increasing biodiversity. While the inner bark feeds the tree through its inner bark layer called phloem, which transports sugars created through the photosynthesis process, and is beloved by beavers and porcupines, it’s the protective outer bark layers, or periderm, that help us identify a tree species by sight or feel.
Take, for example, oak bark. The oak’s periderm works hard to protect the tree from outside elements, while a new periderm forms beneath the old one as it splits and breaks apart. It’s vertical wrinkling and cracked appearance occur over and over, depending upon the tree species.
A tree’s bark holds information to the naked eye, such as texture and thickness. Additionally, the lichens, algae, and mosses that form as rust, grey, green, or brown add another dimension of interest and character to trees. But moss is more than just eye candy for the bark. Moss growing on tree bark creates a moist environment for the bark by trapping moisture. Mosses are important in ecosystems for many reasons. They not only hold moisture but also help form soil and add valuable nutrients to the soil. Moss on trees is yet another biodiversity-maker since they are a haven to organisms sometimes too small for the naked eye.
I can’t wait to visit the old valley oak by the creek as the season’s first rains progress. When moisture is absorbed into the old oak’s bark, mimicking parched Earth, its wrinkles and channels will flow with life-giving water, eventually soothing the entire tree system. Each plant will tell us a story if we learn to listen. The intelligence of the natural world inspires us to slow down and savor the lessons of connection.
